the snake in your bed (part 2 of 4)

Last week we discussed my friend’s metaphor of wealth: a snake. Today we’ll address the tension of how two wealthy men in the Bible responded totally differently to Jesus’ invitation.

but is wealth really a snake?

Here’s my honest problem with the metaphor: a snake in your bed is only a threat. There is no version of the story where the man and the snake coexist well. The only winning move is to never have owned the snake in the first place.

And while it rightly captures the dangers of wealth, if that’s where your theology of wealth ends, you’ve got a problem. There’s another half of the metaphor that’s missing.

Scripture doesn’t treat wealth as a predator. Deuteronomy 8:18 says it plainly: “Remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.”

God gave you that ability. On purpose.

If God is the one who gives me the ability to produce wealth, what do I think he intended for me to do with it?

Global missions run on money. Medical care costs money. Raising a family, building a business that honors God, supporting your church, caring for the poor -- all of it is powered by wealth generation. These aren’t the side effects of sleeping with a snake. They’re the fruit of something God designed.

So wealth isn’t necessarily a snake, but it’s by no means neutral.

I’ve described wealth like the sun. It’s magnetic. It draws you in. Get too close and you’ll burn up -- that’s the rich young ruler. But pull too far away and you’ll miss the warmth and light God intended for your life. God made wine and oil to gladden the heart of man. Enjoyment isn’t the enemy.

Or think of it like manure. (Stay with me.) Spread wealth around and everything it touches grows healthier. Hoard it in one place and you’re sitting on a toxic pile that breeds disease.

The snake metaphor gets the danger right. Wealth can definitely be dangerous. Serving it is. Loving it is. Hoarding it is. We are easily drawn to it, impressed by it, and most of us commit our lives to accumulating it. But the metaphor misses the other half of the truth: wealth is a tool, and in the hands of someone surrendered to God, it can be leveraged for eternal impact.

In my orbit around wealth, am I drawing too close to its warmth and comfort? Have I been diligent to spread the fertilizer of my wealth around so that it might bring life and refreshment to others?

the man who loved his snake

The story goes that there was a man who owned a pet snake.

It was kind of the passion of his life. He loved this animal. And his deeply held conviction was simple: if you love the snake, the snake will love you back.

So he slept with it. Every night. In his bed.

Years went by.

And then one night, while he was sleeping, the snake killed him.

An expert later explained what actually happened. The snake was never his friend. It was never returning the affection. It was simply waiting until it was big enough that it was sure it could kill him.

big enough to kill

That’s your investment account.

That’s the application from a friend of mine -- also a financial advisor -- who uses the story to illustrate the dangers of wealth.

Think about it.

When you start off, it’s innocuous. You put 10% of your paycheck into a 401(k). Year after year. It’s just what responsible people do. You barely think about it.

And then one day you’re 55 or 60 and you look up and there’s a number on the screen that would have been unimaginable to your 25-year-old self.

And now ...the snake is big enough to kill you.

Have you ever stopped to consider whether your wealth is serving you... or slowly becoming your master?

the warnings are real

Jesus was remarkably blunt about money. He didn’t dance around it.

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” (Luke 16:13)

Paul echoed the warning: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:10)

Pierced themselves. That language is violent on purpose.

And the Gospels give us a devastating side-by-side. In Matthew 19, a rich young man asks Jesus what he must do to have eternal life. Jesus tells him to sell his possessions and give to the poor. The man walked away sad, because he had great wealth. The snake was already big enough.

But in Luke 19, there’s Zacchaeus. Wealthy. Corrupt. And yet when Jesus enters his life, he stands up and gives away more than half of everything he had. Voluntarily. Joyfully.

Same Jesus. Same invitation. Two completely different responses.

This is where the snake metaphor breaks down a little bit. Why did the rich man succumb to the death blow of his wealth while Zacchaeus somehow escaped the coils of the snake as it attempted to tighten around him? We’ll explore that tension further in next week’s newsletter.

How would you describe your relationship with money right now -- and is that the relationship you actually want? Would it change if you believed it was never really yours to begin with?

A few housekeeping updates for the One Degree Podcast.